Cambodia: Sugar palm with coconut milk

Ingredients 

• 50 gglutinous rice 
• ½ tspsea salt 
• 625 mlcoconut milk 
• 4fresh sugar palm fruit, peeled, pitted or 200 g tinned sugar palm fruit, drained, sliced 
• 3 tbspliquid palm sugar or shaved palm sugar (jaggery) 
• 80 mlcoconut cream

Cook's notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Instructions

Soak the rice in water for 20 minutes, then strain. 

Add the rice to a saucepan, along with the salt and half of the coconut milk. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the rice softens. 

Meanwhile, if using fresh sugar palm fruit, peel the fruit and remove the stones, working over a bowl to catch the juices. Thinly slice the fruit, and then set the juice aside. 

Add the sugar palm fruit and remaining coconut milk to the rice. 

Stir, then cook for a further 5 minutes, or until the rice becomes translucent. Stir in the palm sugar and cook for a further 2 minutes. 

Divide the rice among four bowls. Drizzle each with a tablespoon of the coconut cream and serve warm.

By

Luke Nguyen, SBS.COM.AU

MY PHNOM PENH: Youk Chhang, Genocide archivist

Fri, 22 April 2016

Audrey Wilson, the Phnom Penh Post

Youk Chhang is the director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia and a Phnom Penh native. On the 41st anniversary of the city’s fall this week, he sat down with Audrey Wilson to recall some of his favourite sites of memory in Phnom Penh – and his hope for the capital’s future.

Russian Embassy

In the old days, this building belonged to the National Bank of Cambodia, and my uncle worked there. It was the tallest building in the city. Any employee of the National Bank could buy an apartment. Every other weekend, we would go there. On the fourth floor, you could see the river and the view. They had a soccer field, tennis court, volleyball court. It was very private. It’s also the first place in Phnom Penh to grow the royal yellow flower – I remember because I used to pick it and sell it to the foreigners. When I returned, it had become the Russian Embassy, so I had no access to it. It’s something that the past has taken away, and I want it back. 

Battambang Restaurant

Khmer beef skewers

These char-grilled beef skewers served in French baguettes are a traditional Khmer street food. At the heart of the marinade is the kreung which is a fragrant paste made from lemongrass, turmeric, garlic and galangal and which is used as the basis for many Cambodian dishes.

SERVES 

4 

PREPARATION 

45MIN

COOKING 

10MIN

SKILL LEVEL 

MID 

Ingredients 

• 2 tbspfish sauce 
• 1 tbspliquid palm sugar or shaved palm sugar (jaggery) 
• 2 tbspannatto oil 
• 4 tbspkreoung paste 
• 500 gbeef brisket, finely sliced 
• 4Vietnamese baguettes 

Pickled vegetables

• 70 mlfish sauce 
• 70 mlwhite vinegar 
• 125 gsugar 
• 500 ggreen papaya, peeled, shredded 
• ½carrot, peeled, shredded 
• 2long red chillies, finely sliced

Cook's notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Instructions

Marinating time: overnight

You'll need to begin this recipe 1 day ahead.

Make the pickled vegetables a day ahead. Combine the fish sauce, vinegar, sugar and 250 ml water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature. 

Transfer the mixture to an airtight container and add the papaya, carrot and chillies. Mix well, seal and leave to pickle overnight, or for 24 hours. 

The beef can also be marinated well ahead. Combine the fish sauce, palm sugar, annatto oil and kreoung paste in a mixing bowl with a pinch of sea salt. Stir until the salt has dissolved. 

Add the beef and mix until well coated. Cover and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours, but at least 2 hours. 

When you’re nearly ready to cook, soak eight bamboo skewers in cold water for 30 minutes. 

Heat a barbecue or chargrill pan to medium. Thread the beef onto the skewers and chargrill for 2–3 minutes on each side, or until cooked to your liking. 

Slice the baguettes halfway through, creating a pocket. Fill each one with some pickled vegetables and two beef skewers. Pull the skewers out of the rolls and serve.

By

Luke Nguyen, SBS.COM.AU

How to Discover Your Best Time of the Day to Work

When you try to become more productive, you don't get there by mere willpower. In order to attain peak productivity, you've got to have a plan. In this article, you'll learn an easy-to-follow plan that will improve your productivity. 

The secret is simple -- discovering the best time of day to work.

Productivity isn't just about cool email tricks or nifty time management strategies. Those are important, but it's more -- it's about harnessing energy and time to do more and better work. 

If you follow this plan, you will become more productive. It's just that simple. Here is the five-step process. 

1. Determine your optimal part of the day to work.

The first step in discovering your best time is to do a careful self-analysis. In this step, your goal is not to set a strict schedule, but to find the broadest part of the day that you are going to be more productive. 

Here are two questions to guide you to this discovery. 

When during the day do I have the greatest amount of energy and concentration?